Why Vegetable Oil Is So Bad For You (and the healthy alternatives you can opt for instead).

Despite it's deceiving title (aren't all things "vegetable" supposed to be healthy?!), vegetable oils, especially hydrogenated oils, are one of the most inflammatory foods on the planet. These include canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, and cottonseed oil.  

Inflammatory foods, such as vegetable oils  (if eaten regularly) cause an immune response that is never “shut off”.  This constant production of immune cells creates a state of chronic inflammation in the body which can do permanent damage, leading to cancer, heart disease, arthritis and Alzheimer’s, among other health concerns.

One of the issues with vegetable oils is that they are very unstable oils. When an oil is unstable, it creates oxidation in the body. 

Think about it this way - oxidation in the body is exactly what "anti-oxidants" are trying to get rid of, or heal the body from. Anti-oxidants, good. Oxidation, bad.

Anti-oxidants eat up oxidation, and reverse and slow the aging process (alright, alright, alright!). 

Foods that are oxidized do the reverse. They make you age faster and cause chronic inflammation in your entire body, including, and especially, your beloved, all powerful gut! 

There are four reasons that vegetable oils are so inflammatory. 

Number one - they're hydrogenated (aka trans fats). 

Number two - they are made from GMO crops (meaning they have been sprayed to high heaven with gut busting, toxic chemicals). 

Number three - they are processed with chemical solvents, steamers, neutralizers, de-waxers, bleach and deodorizers before they end up in the bottle and residues from these solvents, not surprisingly, end up in the oils. 

And number four - they are very high in omega 6 fatty acids. 

Now, you may find yourself thinking, "but I thought omega fats were good for me?"

And they are, but in a specific ratio. 

To keep low levels of inflammation within the body, you need to have a balanced ratio of omega 3 fats to omega 6 fats. The ratio should be anywhere between 1:1 and 1:4. They should be very close to even.

But what's happening with today's standard diet is that people are getting way too many omega 6 fats and not nearly enough omega 3 fats, causing a severe imbalance.